BARBI TWINS: Shane and Sia Barbi, Best Known Collectively as "The Barbi Twins", are Vegan Animal Activists, Rescuers, Authors and Spokespersons for Animal Rights: Educating and Advocating for the Safety and Well Being of All Animals and Marine Life Across the Globe. Media contact for Barbi Twins (Events, Support, etc): James Gonis, (310) 315-8635, jamesg@playboy.com

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Meet Lennox, example and inspiration for the 'dog'umentary called "I Have a Dream." Lennox was a loveable family member. Lennox's only offense is being a mix-breed dog that too closely resembles a pit bull (and he's not a pit bull). Lennox's friends and supporters put up a two year battle to try to save his life but Belfast city council wanted him destroyed because he was deemed "dangerous"... for breed alone! The Barbi Twins and others are tired of breed prejudice.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

During the Easter Holidays the Barbi Twins, along with LA Animal Services continued their rescue efforts by getting the word out that the cute little bunnies that are purchased for Easter are not Toys - they are a responsibility and need to be adopted for life. Remember it may be after Easter holidays but the bunnies are still cute and still need love.

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Every animal activist and environmentalist knows vegan Paul Watson of Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, but others may know him as the most famous Captain in the world from his TV show “Whale Wars” and as one of the founders of Greenpeace. He is mostly known for confronting illegal poachers of whales and other mammals. My sister and I are fortunate to know him as a humble, wise, protective, down to earth guy that happens to be the most famous environmentalist and animal activist in the world, dedicated mostly to marine conservation.

Sea Shepherd said Watson is accused of violating ships’ traffic during the filming of a documentary in 2002. The group said the incident took place in Guatemalan waters, when Sea Shepherd encountered an illegal shark finning operation run by a Costa Rican ship, the Varadero.

Sea Shepherd said it told the Varadero’s crew to stop and head to port to be prosecuted. The crew accused Sea Shepherd of trying to kill them. However, on the contrary, the video proves to be good evidence that this is not true. In actuality, Sea Shepherd uncovered illegal shark fining activities. These ridiculous charges need to be dropped, and Costa Rica needs to stand behind Sea Shepherd in protecting brutal, illegal poaching of sharks and other sea life!

Captain Paul Watson waits in jail and is moments away from possibly being extradited to Costa Rica, which will not be good. Paul Watson’s freedom is at the mercy of the Honorable Minister of Justice and the Honorable Minister of Foreign Affairs.

My sister and I, as strong Sea Shepherd supporters, are calling on every animal and conservation activist or anyone that supports freedom of speech, to help Captain Paul Watson by contacting the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Foreign Affairs to ask them to stop this unfair “political” extradition!

Please call, email, and fax the following Ministers:

Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger, Federal Minister of Justice

Deutscher Bundestag

Platz der Republik

11011 Berlin

Telephone 030 – 227 751 62

Fax 030 – 227 764 02

E-Mail: sabine.leutheusser-schnarrenberger@bundestag.de

Federal Ministry of Justice

Mohrenstrasse

37 10117 Berlin

Germany

Telephone: +49 (030) 18 580-0

Telefax: +49 (030) 18 580-9525

Dr. Guido Westerwelle – Minister of Foreign Affairs

FDP-Bundestagsfraktion

Platz der Republik 1 11011

Berlin

Tel.: 030 / 22771636

Fax: 030 / 22776562

E-Mail: guido.westerwelle@bundestag.de

This decision affects all animal and environmental activists, and could set precedence in the activist world. We need to support and stand behind Captain Paul Watson who has done no crime, and defends the defenseless by exposing and confronting corruption or illegal activities.

Sunday, March 4, 2012

The Barbi twins and I agree to disagree on a lot of issues, but I certainly commend them for doing their homework. They vehemently oppose horse slaughter on the grounds that horses weren’t bred for human consumption. I did not ask them to comment on zoo animal consumption of horse meat, but I pretty much know where they stand.

The Barbi twins assert that “horses were bred and domesticated to be companion animals like a dog or cat. They also served as working animals on farms, and provided transport for people. They also risked their lives in wartime.”

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Barbi Twins and Elayne Boosler combine efforts to help Stray Cat Alliance's petition against the repeal of the Hayden Law which was written to protect shelter animals.

Elayne, Shane and Sia - The "Triplets"
Elayne Boosler and the Barbi Twins

Elayne: "Then came the "Hayden Law." SB 1785, named for its sponsor,
California State Sen. Tom Hayden, became a life saver for adoptable
shelter animals, and a humane and valued partner to animal rescuers and
owners. It made animal shelters more accountable. It gave the public
longer to find their lost animals before they were killed. It mandated
more "work friendly" hours to the public for going to the shelters. It
was so good, after a few years it expanded to offer owner-surrendered
animals the same amount of time (four to six business days) to stay
alive for adoption and rescue instead of being instantly killed.

Better and better, right? And now, worse. Gov. Jerry Brown wants to
repeal the Hayden Law. Everything comes down to money, but even here,
the math is wrong"

Thursday, February 23, 2012

We are spokespersons for Stray Cat Alliance (SCA), against the Hayden Law Repeal.

Governor Jerry Brown
wants to revoke the Hayden Law for shelter pets in California which
currently gives 4-6 days to allow owners to find their lost pets,
injured
animals to relieve donated medical attention or for fostering or
adoption opportunity. Gov. Jerry Brown wants to cut funds off by
eliminating the wait period and killing the pets within only a 72 hour
waiting period. This will create mass killings at shelters. THIS IS NOT
AN OPTION! Killing has only opened the window for breeders, creating
more
discarded pets that are dumped at shelters.

As SCA points out, it actually saves money to implement a spay/neuter program. For instance, to
house, euthanize and dispose a pet, it's $250, whereas to simply fix
the pet, it is less than $50.

Jerry Brown's solution is not only
unethical and uncompassionate, it also won't solve the problem of pet
population. Killing never has been an answer, just an excuse for
breeders to continue to over-breed.

It is far cheaper and more cost
effective to implement a spay/neuter program.
Petition to urge Gov Jerry Brown to reconsider the Hayden Law Repeal.

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Recently, we shared the news that Atlantic City Steel Pier planned to reopen the diving horse shows that were part of the pier from the 1920′s through the 70′s. Owner Anthony Catanoso planned for the events to be part of the big additions going into the location this year and to host the first shows Memorial Day Weekend.

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

The Barbi Twins speak out about variouis subjects around horse slaughter such as the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM), the lack of USDA laws to protect horses, the economic myths that go with the horse meat trade, the sad truths around which horses go to the slaughter houses and what the individual can do to prevent cruelty to these beautiful animals beginning with supporting bills like the American Horse Slaughter
Prevention Act .

Monday, February 6, 2012

"The diving horse events were stopped in the 1970′s with a brief return
in the 90′s, but now Steel Pier President Anthony Catanoso plans to
reopen the ridiculous and cruel shows by this summer. If you’re
wondering what these events are all about – riders mount horses and ride
them up a 40 foot pier and then plunge into the 12ft of water below.
Yes, seriously.".....

Friday, February 3, 2012

Horses
are as symbolic as the country they built, America. It is a shame we
don’t give them the respect they have earned. For centuries, horses shed
their blood to give their service to us. It says a lot when a country
has better laws for its flag (that doesn’t have a spine or feel pain),
then it does for the horses. Horse slaughter and the wild-horse round
ups have been the buzz in the media recently. Here are the common
questions and facts about horse slaughter and wild horse round-up
controversies.

Why is there an uproar about horses being slaughtered or abused more than other livestock animals?

Horses
weren’t bred for human consumption; they were bred and domesticated to
be companion animals like a dog or cat. They also helped build our
country by working the farms, providing transport and even risking their
lives in our battles. In 1971, Congress voted to protect our wild
horses with a special a special law. They tasked the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) with the responsibility. Sadly, the BLM was the very
agency that had been killing the horses they were asked to protect.

Does horse slaughter help our economy?

Actually,
American tax dollars are used to support these foreign owned slaughter
houses. We are paying to provide inspections on meat that goes
overseas. This is a big government merging with big business for profit.
They hide this greed in the disguise of compassion by insisting
slaughter is humane. The ringleader of pro-slaughter advocates recites
her facts (propaganda) from an inconsistent and inaccurate GAO
(Government Accounting Office) report. Horse slaughter is a good profit
business for foreign owned companies, as horsemeat goes for as much as
$40/lb.

Common Confusion… If Congress unanimously voted in 1971 for
the BLM (Bureau of Land Management) to be the government agency that
protects wild horses, then why does the BLM insist on deadly round-ups?
They end up harming the horses and not protecting them and all with tax
payers’ money?

What tax payers didn’t know is that the BLM is made up
of cattlemen, not horse advocates. The BLM was originally behind
eradicating the horses. They have always wanted to replace wild horses
with cattle on the horses land. So why did the government put the BLM in
charge of “protecting” the wild horses? Profit disguised as compassion
once again by our government merging with big business and making a
worse monopoly which leaves the tax payers left with the bill! The wild
horses are slowly going extinct. There were 2,000,000 in 1900 and today
we can only approximate to 20,000 in 10 western states. The cattle and
oil rigs are now replacing the horses.

What is inhumane about slaughter and wild horse round-ups?

Both
slaughter and wild horse round-ups are blatant animal cruelty. The
helicopter round-ups spook the horses so they end up badly injured or
trampled to death. Many times pregnant horses abort foals in these
stampedes. The remaining horses usually die from extreme neglect
(hunger, thirst, overcrowding) in the inhumane holding pens. Ironically,
this was the very excuse the BLM used to round-up the horses in the
first place! Then the horses may be “adopted” by 3rd party kill buyers
for slaughter even though it is illegal to slaughter a wild horse. The
loading and transport of horses is also animal abuse. Any horse expert
can tell you it’s harder on a horse than other livestock, whether it’s
in the next city or across the border. Transporters stuff the horses in
trailers way to small, without water, food or rest. This is pure
brutality as many transporters admit.

One thing is for sure,
slaughter is slaughter, and whether it’s done on US soil or foreign
soil, it is animal abuse and cruelty. Horses brains are further back in
the head which makes it harder to find, thus making shooting or killing
the horses much more difficult than any other livestock. Horses
sometimes have to be shot three to five times and throats slit to
prevent screaming. There is proof that while carving into the horses
many are still conscious. There is nothing humane about slaughter and
it’s impossible to enforce it, as Dr. Temple Grandin, humane slaughter
expert, even admitted. There are very few USDA laws to protect the
horses and they are rarely enforced. “Humane slaughter” is an oxymoron.

Why should everyone care about horse slaughter bill passing?

For
those who don’t care about horses, you should care your taxes are
wasted on this, much more than the myth that this creates jobs. For
those who were told that horse meat is better for you, they haven’t
heard about the toxic warnings, dangerous drugs and medicines used in
the horse industry. These are also hidden from the commercial market.
Horses were not bred for eating!

What about the unwanted or abandoned horses?

Well
just like with dogs and cats, it becomes the owner’s responsibility
once we outlaw slaughter. This is a whole different animal issue, which
is not solved with animal cruelty of horse slaughter. Moreover, the
horse slaughter business only wants healthy horses. A USDA study said
that 92% of slaughter horses are in good condition. Many victims of
horse theft or horse fraud complain they have found that their horses
had gone to slaughter. This is because kill buyers seek healthy, young
horses in order to sell better quality meat. Many of the so-called
abandoned horses were ironically from the horse killers themselves
leaving behind the sickly horses at the borders that weren’t good enough
for horsemeat.

Who is the blame for the abandoned horses?

The
abandoned horses are not the problem; it is only a decoy from the truth.
The real problem comes from the breeders and the breeder supporters who
encourage incentives for the breeding of as many horses as possible.
This is specifically true of Quarter horse breeders who are using
artificial insemination. They promote slaughter as a dumping ground
which opens a huge window of business for more breeding. By the way,
most of the “abandoned” horses are Quarter horses which tell you right
there what “their” agenda is!

What can we do?

First of all get
the facts straight and don’t buy into the propaganda being spewed by
pro-slaughter pitches or the clever BLM claims disguised as facts.
Remember the BLM is just cattlemen with an agenda to replace the horses
with cattle, gold or an oil pipeline. Then spread this factual
information.

Right now there is a perfect “one stop solution” to end
this all….a bill before the US Congress that stops all horse slaughter
in the US and stops all transport of American horses for slaughter to
any foreign country. This bill is called the American Horse Slaughter
Prevention Act. This bill was originally drafted in 2001 and introduced
to Congress in 2002 by the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), who has led
this national effort for ten years. Chris Heyde, from AWI, worked
tirelessly on state laws to shut down the three U.S. slaughter houses in
2007; two in Texas and one in Illinois. However, the ultimate goal is
passage of a federal bill that will prevent any new plants from opening
and will prevent American horses from being shipped to Mexico or Canada
for slaughter.

Now the horses need your help. We have the power to
end this permanently. All you have to do is call the Capitol switchboard
at (202) 224-3121 and ask to be connected to your Senators and
Representative. Then tell them you are pro-horse and urge them to help
pass the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (H.R. 2966 and S. 1176)
today! You can find out who your legislators are by visiting AWI’s
Compassion Index at www.compassionindex.org . Even more effective than a
call, you can go to your elected officials’ local town hall and urge
them to support these bills face to face. Because this year is election
year, your representatives are eager to hear what you want. We have the
power with our vote, but also because it is election year. Congress
closes early this year, so we have to act quickly.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

In reading these e-mails about hoarding I could not resist in
commenting.

My sis and I are known for our recovery from bulimia, and my mom is a
top therapist for alcoholics and addicts. I have learned to recognize
addictive behavior, not by their symptoms of excess weight or being
drunk, but instead by their character defects: control issues, being a
victim, denial, etc.

Hoarding is a mental illness, just like bulimia, and the addiction that
follows hoarding allows us to add the "ism" to rescue. In fact, I
recoined the word hoarding into "rescuism", to force people to view
hoarding as mental addiction and disease. You cannot judge or get angry
at someone mentally ill. However, just as we should not judge a "drunk",
you still can stop the drunk from driving, when it involves other living
creatures. I believe this should hold true with a hoarder and rescuism.
Their illness makes them unfit to see their sickness and unfit to run a
shelter with dependent living creatures. Furthermore, you cannot tell a
drunk they are drunk. Telling a mentally ill person they are a hoarder,
will only make them defend themselves or defend other fellow hoarders.

Sunday, January 15, 2012

There is NO pet overpopulation, but rather a pet crisis which is directly related to the lack of laws and spay and neuter programs. The pet crisis is also because people are unwilling to commit for life to their pet, just like a family member, or they are unwilling to adopt imperfect or older pets. The chances of an older dog getting adopted is less than 10% and the chances of an older cat getting adopted is less than 1%. Rabbits aren't even considered pets, they are "property". They all end up killed or abandoned on the streets